Part One
"For as long as I shall exist, this world will know no peace and once I break free from my prison, I will bring about the world's end." - Exerts from the Book of Dragonroth Part One Years: 0 AGD to 234 AGD 234 Years Chapter 1 The Rise of an Empire 145 - 234 AGD Several hundred years after the Great Departure, the world had become numb to the violence and brutality that the wars had brought the world. Kingdoms and empires rose and fell, villages were razed to the ground by murderous bandits, and much of the land was lawless. Yet, despite all of this chaos, the great Serrican warriors were never seen. Around 126 AGD, civil war consumed the Reonian nation of the Atticus Imperium on the Kirlarra continent. Hundreds were killed in the first weeks of fighting and there seemed to be no end in sight. Seeing as both leaders in the civil war were warlords and only wanted to rule the nation with an iron fist, hundreds of civilians fled the war-torn nation. Many perished or were never seen again as they tried to navigate the treacherous jungles of land but others decided to try their luck at finding a new home elsewhere in the world. An expedition led by Gaven Dailuth, a former soldier in the Imperium's army, set sail to the west to scout out uncharted territory. Several years prior, the Imperium' scouting ships discovered a land lush in natural resources and seemed uninhabited. This new world was said to be a paradise and was free of the conflict that their homeland had been plagued with. It took five months until land was finally in sight and numerous people perished along the way from disease, lack of food, and unsanitary living conditions. For those that survived, there was hope of a new future of peace and easy living. Finally, the remaining settlers and ships landed on the New World. This new land was beautiful with snowcapped mountains to the north, vast forests covering the land, and wild game roamed the area in the masses. But this was only the calm before the storm. Over a period of a year, the people had built a large city that housed several thousand people. At first, the people wanted Gaven to be their leader and their major but the man refused. He was a warrior, not a politician. The city was then named Greco, which was named after the elected major. One night, a woman's shrieking scream echoed throughout the city and it awoke everyone. Upon investigation of the woman’s home, the guards found blood everywhere inside the house. A bloody trail led to the east, out of the city, and towards an unknown territory. Greco ordered the city guard to investigate further and follow the blood trail but shortly after leaving, the men were never seen again. Two more groups of militia men were sent to look for the missing men and woman, but like the first group, they were never seen again. The Reonian people began to panic and urged Greco to do something about the missing people. Unable to decide on a course of action, Gaven took the lead and decided to accompany a band of militia men and entered the uncharted area. As if they walked through a wall of cold air, the temperature of the whole area seemed to cool down and was enough to raise the neck hair of all the men. This was a mysterious land to the people. Gaven and his men were soon met by monstrosities. A few of the monsters were that of the guardsmen that had ventured into this tainted land. They were missing much of their hair, their skin was a grey, leathery texture, and there was no reasoning with these mad men. Gaven and his men were surrounded; the howls and screams of these creatures could be heard from all around. Gaven made the decision to take his men and leave the tainted area. They were outnumbered and ill equipped to take on these beasts. As the men retreated back to the safety of their city walls, the swarms of beasts chased them and began to pick the men off one by one. In the end, only Gaven and three other men made it to the city. The remaining guards in the city barricaded the city gates and manned the walls. The creatures had made their move and were on the offensive. The guards did what they could by shooting as many as they could with arrows but they were quickly getting swarmed. Within a day, the savage beasts breached the walls and were in the city. Days passed and the fighting continued. The monsters continued to replenish their numbers by turning their Reonian victims into monsters; the major was one of those victims. Gaven continued to try and rally his people to fight on but they were no soldiers; they were farmers, smiths, and shoe makers. Suddenly, as if the gods had intervened themselves, the mighty beats of war drums could be heard in the distance. They were the thunderous beats of drums on a war path. Gaven reached higher ground and witnessed a miracle. Hundreds of fully armored men had appeared riding in on powerful steeds. The warriors were no ordinary men for they had long hair with pointed ears. High-Elves, they were called, and they were led by the Elven Lord Sairfon Adire. With Sairfon's help, he and Gaven were able to destroy the assaulting creatures and sent the remaining beasts back from there they came. If it had not been for the Elves, Gaven and his people would surely have been at the mercy of the beasts. To honor their sacrifices, the Reonians welcome the Elves in with open arms and forged a long last alliance with their neighbors the north. In recognition of his service and dedication to the people, the city was renamed Dailuth and Gaven was elected as the city’s leader. Over the course of time, the Reonians expanded and cities began to pop up everywhere. Their population grew at a rapid rate and before long Gaven proclaimed these united cities an empire. The name he chose for his empire meant a lot to Gaven for it was his father’s name. Austrius was the name and it was a name that the world would come to know as one of the most powerful nations in the world. Emperor Dailuth and Lord Sairfon became friends. Their two powerful nations conducted much trade with each other and they even shared their cultures. In today’s Austrius, there are still some traces of Elven culture embedded within the empire. Much of it the Elven influenced structures, however, were destroyed when Emperor Yu Kilo’tao ordered the destruction of all non-Reonian architect. Chapter 2 Rwolandrian Occupation 198 - 225 AGD Holindia, a human kingdom to the east, had been conquered by their northern neighbor, Rwolandria, another human kingdom, after several years of dispute over land. Despite their best efforts, the warriors of Holindia were no match for the onslaught brought on by Rwolandria and their conquest came relatively swiftly. A number of Holindian nobles and generals conspired with the Rwolandria invaders in return for power and privileged positions in the new regime. For the next twenty seven years, Holindia was part of the Rwolandrian kingdom and the Holindian people were extorted with harsh taxes and laws in order to support the new regime. The people were denied their nobility and they were not allowed freedom of religion. Control over the oppressed people was maintained through brutal punishment and public executions. Rwolandria maintained a military presence and a secret policing force within the country with the help of Holindian collaborators, who aided their occupiers out of fear and greed. There were small pockets of resistance throughout the occupation, but for the most part, this resistance was scattered and unorganized. Full-scale insurrection began just a few years before the end of the Glory Era, as a group of nobles and commoners came together under the banner of Farin Forrester. The rebellion actually started after Farin and his warriors attacked a heavily guarded Rwolandrian caravan that was carrying a vast amount of gold that was collected from the taxation of the Holindian people. Outnumbered and backed with only limited support, the rebellion focused on hit and run attacks, hoping to stay alive as long as possible while they attempted to gather support from the rest of their people. One day, during a raid of a Rwolandrian armory, Farin was tricked by some of his own men and was lured into a trap in which he was killed. His body was then dragged throughout out Holindia to instill fear and crush the rebellion but the plan backfired after this brutal move inspired more people to fight for their freedom. After hundreds of bloodied battles and three gruesome years later, the Holindians finally won their independence during the Battle of Highridge. This victory was brought on by Farin's daughter, Isabella Forrester, after she slew the regional governor, Erik von Respontin, a Rwolandrian general whose charge was to maintain order in Holindia, in single combat. Rwolandria was embarrassed by their defeat at Highridge and they took heavy casualties in the battle. In the end, they never sent in an invasion force to try and retake Holindia since it would have been too costly. Holindia was in no shape to fight another war, either, since they lacked the manpower and the financial backing to invade Rwolandria themselves. Even after they won their independence, diplomatic relations did not resume until after Isabella’s death and the accession to the throne was obtained by her son, King Kaylith. Even in the years after, the scars of Rwolandrian rule and occupation had a profound influence over Holindian society and politics since many of the Holindian nobles were veterans of the Rebellion War, or a descendant of one. Chapter 3 Tribal Dispute 75 - 234 AGD iTigarians are a feline race and are native species of Tigra; a mountainous region in northern Vagabond. They have inhabited the rigorous snowcapped mountains since the dawn of time and they have a rich history. In today's world, Tigarians are well known for being peaceful beings who strive towards helping others. This was not always the case. In fact, there was a time when the Tigarians were warmongers and were at constant war with one another when they were broken into five separate tribes; Ara'gath, Samiya, Ula'math, Saeeda, and Rath'ma. Each tribe was led by an Aristah - Grand Elder - who wanted nothing but power and control over their sacred mountains. The years of bloodshed took a toll on the Tigarian race and their numbers were dangerously close to extinction. It finally took for one Aristah to realize the dire need for peace among his people. Aristah Za'man Rarkin of the Rath'ma tribe organized a meet with the other Aristahs and he made them a deal. His deal was that if he could beat them single handily in mortal combat, then the other clans would fall in line and submit to the Rath'ma clan. In 215 AGD, Rarkin was victorious and killed the other Aristahs in combat. As was the deal, the other clans fell in line and Rarkin unified his people. Due to his great ability to lead, the Tigarians flourished and their numbers grew over the years.